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Virginia Resolution of 1798
Authors Thomas Jefferson and
James Madison:
RESOLVED, That the General Assembly of Virginia, doth unequivocably
express a firm resolution to maintain and defend the Constitution of the United
States, and the Constitution of this State, against every aggression
either foreign or domestic, and that they will support "the government" of the United States in all measures
"warranted" by "the former".
That this assembly most solemnly
declares a warm attachment to the Union of the "States", to maintain which it pledges all
its powers; and that for this end, it is their duty to watch
over and oppose every infraction of those
principles which constitute the "only basis" of that Union, because
a faithful observance of them, can alone secure it's
existence and the public happiness.
That this Assembly doth explicitly
and peremptorily declare, that it views the powers of the federal government,
as resulting from the compact, to which the states are parties; as limited
by the "plain sense and intention" of the instrument
constituting the "compact"; as NO further
valid that they are authorized by the grants "ENUMERATED" in "THAT COMPACT"; and that in case of
a deliberate, palpable, and dangerous exercise of other powers, not granted
by the said COMPACT, the STATES who are parties
thereto, have the right, and are in
DUTY bound, to interpose for arresting
the progress of the "EVIL", and for maintaining within
their respective limits, the authorities,
rights and liberties appertaining to them.
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That the General Assembly doth also express its DEEP REGRET, that a spirit has in sundry
instances, been manifested by the federal
government, to "enlarge its powers by FORCED constructions" of the constitutional
charter which defines them; and that implications have
appeared of a "design" to "EXPOUND" certain >>>"GENERAL
"PHRASES" (which
having been copied from the very limited grant of power, in the former articles
of confederation were the less liable to be misconstrued) so as to
destroy the meaning and effect, of the particular "ENUMERATION" which NECESSARILY
EXPLAINS AND LIMITS THE GENERAL PHRASES; and so as to consolidate
the states by degrees, into ONE sovereignty (APP: i.e.
ONE NATION), the obvious tendency and inevitable
consequence of which would be, to >>>"TRANSFORM" the present
"republican" system of the United States,
into "an absolute", or "at best" a mixed >>>"MONARCHY".
That the General Assembly doth particularly protest against the palpable
and alarming infractions of the Constitution, in the two late cases of the "Alien and
Sedition Acts" passed at the last session of Congress;
the first of which exercises a power "NO WHERE
DELEGATED" to the federal government, and which by uniting legislative
and judicial powers to those of executive, SUBVERTS THE GENERALPRINCIPLES
of free government; as well as the particular organization,
and positive provisions of the federal constitution; and the other of which
acts, exercises in like manner,
a power NOT delegated by the constitution, but on the contrary, expressly
and positively forbidden by one of the amendments thereto; a power, which more than any
other, ought to produce universal
alarm, because it is levelled against
that right of freely examining
public characters and measures, and of FREE COMMUNICATION AMONG THE PEOPLE
THEREON, which has ever been justly
deemed, the ONLY effectual GUARDIAN
of EVERY OTHER RIGHT
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That this state having by its Convention,
which ratified the federal Constitution, expressly declared, that among
other essential rights, "the Liberty of Conscience and of the Press CANNOT
be cancelled, abridged, restrained, or modified by "ANY" authority of the
"United States"," and from its extreme anxiety to
guard these rights from EVERY possible attack of "sophistry
or ambition", having with other states, recommended
an amendment for that purpose, which amendment was, in due time, annexed to
the Constitution; it would mark a reproachable inconsistency, and criminal
degeneracy, if an indifference were now shewn, to the most
palpable violation of one of
the Rights, thus declared and secured; and to the establishment of
a precedent which may be fatal to the other. That the good
people of this commonwealth, having ever felt, and continuing
to feel, the most sincere affection for their brethren of the other states;
the truest anxiety for establishing and perpetuating the union of all; and
the most scrupulous fidelity to that constitution, which is the pledge of
mutual friendship, and the instrument of mutual happiness; the General Assembly
doth solemnly appeal to the like dispositions of the other states, in confidence
that they will concur with this commonwealth in declaring,
as it does hereby declare,
that the acts aforesaid, are unconstitutional; and that the necessary
and proper measures will be taken by each, for co-operating
with this state, in maintaining the Authorities,
Rights, and Liberties, referred to the States respectively, or to the people.
That the Governor be desired, to
transmit a copy of the foregoing Resolutions to the executive authority of
each of the other states, with a request that the same may be communicated
to the Legislature thereof; and that a copy be furnished to each of the Senators
and Representatives representing this state in the Congress of the United
States.
Agreed to by the Senate, December
24, 1798 >>>Scroll Right for Kentucky
Resolutions >>>
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The Kentucky Resolutions of 1798
Authors Thomas Jefferson and
James Madison:
1. Resolved, That the several States composing,
the United States of America, are not united on the principle of unlimited
submission to their general government; but that, by a compact under
the style and title of a Constitution for the United States, and of amendments
thereto, they constituted a general government for "special purposes"
— "delegated" to that government "certain definite" powers, RESERVING,
each State to itself, the residuary mass of right to their OWN self-government; and that WHENSOEVER
the general government assumes undelegated powers, its acts are "UNAUTHORITATIVE",
"VOID", and of "NO FORCE": that to this compact "each
State" acceded as a State, and is an integral part, its co-States
forming, as to itself, the other party: that the government created
by this
COMPACT was
"NOT" made the exclusive or
final judge of the extent of the powers delegated to itself
(APP: i.e. The Federal Supreme
Court, Executive or Legislative are not the final judge);
since that
would have made "its discretion", and "not the Constitution", the measure
of its powers; but that, as in all other cases
of compact among powers having no common judge, each party has
an EQUAL
right to judge for itself, as
well of infractions as of the mode and measure of redress..
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2. " Resolved, That the Constitution of the United
States, having delegated to Congress a power to punish:
a.) treason,
b.) counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States,
c.) piracies, and felonies committed on the high seas, and
d.) offenses against the law of nations,
and >>>> NO OTHER
CRIMES >>>"WHATSOEVER";
and it being true as a general
principle, and one of the amendments to the Constitution having also declared,
that "the powers not delegated to the United States
by the Constitution,
not prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively,
or to the people,"
therefore the act of Congress, passed on the 14th day of July, 1798, and
intituled "An Act in addition to the act intituled An Act for the punishment
of certain crimes against the United States," as also the act passed by them
on the — day of June, 1798, intituled "An Act to punish frauds committed on
the bank of the United States," (>>>> and ALL their
OTHER ACTS which assume to CREATE, DEFINE, or PUNISH
crimes, OTHER than THOSE so
"ENUMERATED" in the Constitution,) >>> are "ALTOGETHER"
"VOID", and of "NO FORCE";
and that the power to create, define,
and punish such other crimes is reserved, and, of right, appertains SOLELY
and EXCLUSIVELY to the respective "STATES", each within its own territory
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3. Resolved, That it is true as a general principle,
and is also expressly declared by one of the amendments to the Constitutions,
that "the powers not delegated to the United
States by the Constitution, our prohibited by it to the States, are reserved
to the States respectively, or to
the people"; and that NO power over the freedom of
religion, freedom of speech, or freedom of the press being delegated to the
United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States,
all lawful powers respecting
the same did of right remain, and were reserved to the States or the people: that thus was manifested their
determination to retain to themselves the right of judging how far the
licentiousness of speech and of the press may be abridged without lessening
their useful freedom, and how far those abuses which cannot be separated
from their use should be tolerated, rather than the use be destroyed.
And thus also they guarded against ALL abridgment by the United States of the freedom
of religious opinions and exercises, and retained to themselves the right
of protecting the same, as this State, by a law passed on the general demand
of its citizens, had already protected them from "ALL"
human restraint or interference. And that in addition to this general
principle and express declaration, another and more special provision has
been made by one of the amendments to the Constitution, which expressly declares,
that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech
or of the press": thereby guarding in the same sentence, and under
the same words, the freedom of religion, of speech, and of the press:
insomuch, that whatever violated
either, throws down the sanctuary
which covers the others, arid that libels, falsehood,
and defamation, equally with heresy and false religion, are WITHHELD
from the cognizance of federal tribunals. That, therefore, the act of Congress
of the United States, passed on the 14th day of July, 1798, intituled "An
Act in addition to the act intituled An Act for the punishment of certain
crimes against the United States," which does abridge the freedom of the press,
is "NOT LAW", but is "ALTOGETHER"
"VOID", and of "NO FORCE".
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4. Resolved,
That alien friends are under the
jurisdiction and protection of the laws of the State wherein they are: that no power
over them has been delegated to the United States, nor prohibited to the
individual States, distinct from their power over citizens. And it being true as a general
principle, and one of the amendments to the Constitution having also declared,
that "the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor
prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or
to the people," the act of the Congress of the United States, passed on the
— day of July, 1798, intituled "An Act concerning aliens,"
which assumes powers over
alien friends, not delegated by the Constitution, is not law, but is "ALTOGETHER"
"VOID", and of "NO FORCE".
5. Resolved.
That in addition to the general
principle, as well as the express declaration, that powers
not delegated are reserved, another and more special provision,
inserted in the Constitution from abundant caution, has declared that "the
migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing
shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior
to the year 1808" that this commonwealth does admit the migration of
alien friends, described as the subject of the said act concerning aliens:
that a provision against prohibiting
their migration, is a provision against all acts equivalent thereto, or it would be nugatory:
that to remove them when migrated, is equivalent to a prohibition of their
migration, and is, therefore, "CONTRARY"
to the said provision of the Constitution,
and "VOID"
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6. Resolved,
That the imprisonment of a person
under the protection of the laws of this commonwealth, on his
failure to obey the simple order of the President to depart out of the United
States, as is undertaken by said act intituled "An Act concerning
aliens" is contrary to the Constitution, one amendment
to which has provided that "no person shalt be deprived
of liberty without due progress of law"; and that another having provided
that "in all criminal prosecutions
the accused shall enjoy the right to public trial by an impartial jury, to
be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation, to be confronted with
the witnesses against him, to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses
in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense;"
the same act, undertaking to
authorize the President to remove a person out of the United States, who is
under the protection of the law, on his own suspicion, without accusation,
without jury, without public trial, without confrontation of the witnesses
against him, without hearing witnesses in his favor, without defense, without
counsel, is contrary to the provision
also of the Constitution, is therefore not law, but utterly VOID, and of NO
FORCE: that
transferring the power of judging any person, who is under the protection
of the laws from the courts, to the President of the United States, as is
undertaken by the same act concerning
aliens, is AGAINST
the article of the Constitution which provides that "the judicial
power of the United States shall be vested in courts, the judges of which
shall hold their offices during good behavior"; and that
the said act is VOID for that reason also. And it is further to be noted,
that this transfer of judiciary power is to that magistrate of the general
government who already possesses all the Executive, and a negative on all
Legislative powers.
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7. Resolved, That the "construction"
applied by the General Government (as is evidenced by "sundry"
of their proceedings) to those parts of the Constitution
of the United States which delegate to Congress a power "to lay and collect
taxes, duties, imports, and excises, to pay the debts, and provide for the
common defense and general welfare of the United States," and "to make all laws which shall
be necessary and proper for carrying into execution, the powers VESTED by the Constitution in the government
of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof," goes to the destruction of
all limits prescribed to their powers by the Constitution: that words meant
by the instrument to be subsidiary only to the execution of limited powers, ought "NOT TO BE SO CONSTRUED"
as themselves to give "unlimited powers", NOR a part to be so taken as to destroy
the whole residue of that instrument: that the proceedings of the General
Government under color of these articles, will be a fit and necessary subject
of revisal and correction, at a time of greater tranquillity, while
those specified in the preceding resolutions call for immediate
redress.
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8th. Resolved, That a committee of conference and
correspondence be appointed, who shall have in charge to communicate the
preceding resolutions to the Legislatures of the several States: to assure them that
this commonwealth continues in the same esteem of their friendship and union
which it has manifested from that moment at which a common danger first suggested
a common union: that it considers union, for specified national purposes, and particularly
to those specified in their late federal compact, to be friendly, to the
peace, happiness and prosperity of all the States: that faithful
to that compact, according to the "plain intent and meaning" in which it
"was" understood and acceded to by the several parties, it is sincerely anxious for its
preservation: that it does also believe, that
to take from the States all the powers of self-government and transfer them
to a general and consolidated government, without regard to the special
delegations and reservations solemnly agreed to in that compact, is NOT
for the peace, happiness or prosperity of these States; and that therefore
this commonwealth is determined, as it doubts not its co-States are, to submit
to undelegated, and consequently unlimited powers in no man, or body of men
on earth: that in cases
of an abuse of the delegated powers, the members of the general government,
being chosen by the people, a change by the people would be the constitutional
remedy;
BUT, where powers are assumed which have NOT BEEN DELEGATED, a "NULLIFICATION"
of the act is the RIGHTFUL REMEDY: that every STATE has a natural
RIGHT in cases NOT within the COMPACT, (casus non
fœderis) to "NULLIFY" of their "OWN AUTHORITY" all assumptions of power by
others within their limits: that without this right, they
would be under the dominion, absolute and unlimited, of whosoever might exercise
this right of judgment for them:
that nevertheless, this commonwealth, from motives of regard and respect
for its co States, has wished to communicate with them on the subject: that with
them alone it is proper to communicate, they alone being parties
to the COMPACT, and solely authorized to judge in the last resort
of the powers exercised under it,
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Congress being NOT a party, but
"MERELY the CREATURE of THE COMPACT", and SUBJECT as to
its assumptions of power to the final judgment of THOSE by whom, and for whose
use itself and its powers were all created and modified: that if the acts before specified
should stand, these conclusions would flow from them; that the general
government may place any act they think proper on the list of crimes and
punish it themselves whether enumerated OR NOT enumerated
by the constitution as cognizable by them: that
they may transfer its cognizance to the President, or any other person, who
may himself be the accuser, counsel, judge and jury, whose suspicions may
be the evidence, his order the sentence, his
officer the executioner, and his breast the sole record of the transaction: that a very
numerous and valuable description of the inhabitants of these States being,
by this precedent, reduced, as outlaws, to the
absolute dominion of one man, and the barrier of the Constitution thus swept
away from us all, no ramparts now remains
against the passions and the powers of a majority in Congress to protect from
a like exportation, or other more grievous punishment, the minority
of the same body, the legislatures, judges, governors and counsellors of the
States, nor their other peaceable inhabitants, who may venture to reclaim
the constitutional rights and liberties of the States and people, or who for
other causes, good or bad, may be obnoxious to the views, or marked
by the suspicions of the President, or be thought dangerous to his or their
election, or other interests, public or personal;
that the friendless
alien has indeed been selected as the safest subject of a first experiment; but the citizen will soon follow,
or rather, has already followed, for already has a sedition act marked
him as its prey: that these and successive
acts of the same character, unless arrested at the threshold, "NECESSARILY" drive
these States into "REVOLUTION and BLOOD" and will furnish "new calumnies"
against "REPUBLICAN" government, and new pretexts
for THOSE who wish it to be believed
that man cannot be governed but by a rod of iron: that it would be
a dangerous delusion were a confidence in the
men of our choice to silence our fears for the
safety of our rights: that CONFIDENCE
is everywhere the parent of DESPOTISM — free government
is founded in JEALOUSY, and NOT in
CONFIDENCE; it is JEALOUSY and not confidence
which prescribes LIMITED constitutions, to BIND DOWN those whom we are obliged
to trust with power: that our Constitution has accordingly fixed the LIMITS
to which, and >>>NO FURTHER, our confidence may go;
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and let the honest advocate of confidence
read the Alien and Sedition acts, and say if the Constitution
has not been wise in fixing
LIMITS to the government it created, and whether we should be
wise in destroying those limits, Let him say what the government is,
if it be not a TYRANNY, which the men of our choice have con erred
on our President, and the President of our choice
has assented to, and accepted over
the friendly stranger to whom the mild spirit of our country and its
law have pledged hospitality and protection: that the men of our
choice have more respected the bare suspicion of the President, than
the solid right of innocence, the claims
of justification, the sacred force of truth, and the forms and substance of
law and justice. In questions of powers, then, let no more
be heard of confidence in man, but BIND him down from mischief by the CHAINS
of the Constitution.
That this commonwealth does
therefore call on its co-States for an expression of their sentiments
on the acts concerning aliens and for the punishment of certain crimes herein
before specified, plainly declaring whether these acts are or are not
authorized by the federal compact. And it doubts not that their sense
will be so announced as to prove their attachment unaltered to limited
government, weather general or particular. And that the rights and
liberties of their co-States will be exposed to no dangers by remaining embarked
in a common bottom with their own. That they will concur with this
commonwealth in considering the said acts as so palpably against the Constitution
as to amount to an undisguised declaration that that compact is not meant
to be the measure of the powers of the General Government, but that it will
proceed in the exercise over these States, of all powers whatsoever:
that they will view this as
seizing the rights of the States, and consolidating them in the hands of
the General Government, with a power assumed to bind the States (not
merely as the cases made federal, casus fœderis but), in all cases whatsoever,
by laws made, not with their consent, but by others against
their consent: that this would be to surrender
the form of government we have chosen, and live under one deriving its powers
from its own will, and not from our authority; and that the co-States,
recurring to their natural right in cases not made federal, will concur in
declaring these acts void, and of no force, and will each
take measures of its own for providing that neither these acts, nor any others
of the General Government not plainly and intentionally authorized by the
Constitution, shalt be exercised within their respective territories.
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9th. Resolved, That the said committee be authorized
to communicate by writing or personal conference, at any times or places whatever,
with any person or persons who may be appointed by any one or more co-States
to correspond or confer with them; and that they lay their proceedings
before the next session of Assembly.
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